Boundary conditions for simulations of oscillating bubbles using the non-linear acoustic approximation

Abstract

We have developed a new boundary condition for finite volume simulations of oscillating bubbles. Our method uses an approximation to the motion outside the domain, based on the solution at the domain boundary. We then use this approximation to apply boundary conditions by defining incoming characteristic waves at the domain boundary. Our boundary condition is applicable in regions where the motion is close to spherically symmetric. We have tested our method on a range of one- and two-dimensional test cases. Results show good agreement with previous studies. The method allows simulations of oscillating bubbles for long run times (5×105 time steps with a CFL number of 0.8) on highly truncated domains, in which the boundary condition may be applied within 0.1% of the maximum bubble radius. Conservation errors due to the boundary conditions are found to be of the order of 0.1% after 105 time steps. The method significantly reduces the computational cost of fixed grid finite volume simulations of oscillating bubbles. Two-dimensional results demonstrate that highly asymmetric bubble features, such as surface instabilities and the formation of jets, may be captured on a small domain using this boundary condition.